Nathan Haines Electric Band (with Joel Haines)

April 18, 2016April 18, 2016 / JazzLocal32.com / Leave a comment

JoelNathan 087 Musicians of a certain calibre are peripatetic, going where the music or the work takes them. This partly arising out of necessity, but also out of an impulse to explore new sonic and cultural environments. When a child or a grandchild arrives the musicians journeys circumscribe smaller arcs and are less frequent; the local scene being the beneficiary. This is the case with Nathan Haines; happily young Zoot tethers him in our midst for the moment. Haines has a solid reputation here and in the UK, with a loyal fan base in both locations. He has never been afraid to push in new directions, but at the heart of whatever explorations he embarks upon, a default soulfulness underpins the enterprise. This leads him to productive collaborations with like-minded artists, and not necessarily all Jazz purists. From the Hardbop-infused to Soul Jazz to DJ funk – it all works for him. While all of these collaborations are pleasing, none is more so than when he plays alongside brother Joel Haines. JoelNathan 088 The Haines brothers have different musical careers, Nathan Haines outgoing, a public performer and award-winning recording artist – understanding well, the vexed world of marketing and the presentation of non-mainstream music. He balances these competing forces better than most. Brother Joel is a successful composer and a gifted performer as well, but his career these days centres on TV and film work. An engaging musician and a crowd pleaser; less in the public gaze by choice. Improvised music thrives on contrasts and the rub between different sounds always works well in the right hands. Nathan creating soulful innovative grooves and catchy melodies over traditional Jazz offerings, Joel bringing a warm-as-toast Jazzgroove edge, wrapped in a blues/rock package. JoelNathan 087 (1)

The first set kicked off with ‘Eboness’ by Yusef Lateef. A number that Nathan Haines recorded on his award-winning and popular ‘The Poets Embrace’ album. That album recreated the vibe of a particular era – the edge of Blue Note and the warmth of Impulse updated. This version is an exercise in skilfully blended contrasts. The enveloping warmth of Joel Haines and Keys/Synth player Michal Martyniuk created a platform for Nathan Haines to work over. This skilfully juxtaposed blend of ‘cool’ and ‘soul’ is not done often and hearing this I wonder why. Haines playing Lateef is a natural fit, as Lateef was never afraid to stretch beyond mainstream Jazz sensibilities. JoelNathan 090 Next up was ‘Desert Town’ a Haines tune from ‘Heaven & Earth’. That was followed by an earthy version of ‘Set us Free’ (Eddie Harris) and then ‘Mastermind’ (Haines) from his recent ‘5 a Day’ album. Last up on the first set was ‘Land Life’ a tune based on a Harold Land composition. It pleased me to get a mention from the bandstand at this point. It is no secret that I’m a real Harold Land enthusiast. The band tore up the propulsive changes and moving free, made the tune their own. JoelNathan 088 (1)

The second set began with the stunning tune ‘Right Now’ (Haines/Crayford). This collaboration was extremely fruitful and we will see a new project from these musicians in the near future. Next up was a tune by keys player Michal Martyniuk. This had never been aired in public before and its trippy synth-rich vibe took me back to the space Jazz/funk of the 80’s. Appropriately, and immediately following, was a Benny Maupin number ‘It Remains to be Seen’. This is a space-funk classic from his fabulous ‘Slow Traffic to the Right’ album. The album cut in 1978 – at a time when a plethora of wonderful analogue machines entered the market. It was great to hear a number from this scandalously overlooked experimental era – and reprised so effectively. More of this please guys, much more. JoelNathan 096

The set ended with two more numbers, including a reflective and soul drenched composition by Joel Haines. The tune is temporarily titled ‘Untitled’. Whatever the name, it worked for us. The ‘Nathan Haines Electric Band’ is by now an established entity and the ease with which they hit their groove confirms that. Having the ever inventive and highly talented Cameron McArthur on bass gave them a groove anchor and punch. Rounding that off with Stephen Thomas on drums gave lift off. I highly recommend this group as there is something there for anyone with Jazz sensibilities. History and modernity in balance.

Nathan Haines Electric Band

Nathan Haines Electric Band: Nathan Haines (winds and reeds), Joel Haines (guitar), Michal Martyniuk (keys and synthesiser), Cameron McArthur (upright bass), Stephen Thomas (drums). The CJC (Creative Jazz Club), Albion Hotel, 13th April 2016 JoelNathan 089

Joel Haines @ CJC 2014

October 20, 2014October 21, 2014 / JazzLocal32.com / Leave a comment

Guitar Jazz is a surprisingly diverse sub-genre of improvised music. So many barriers are broken down that almost all current (and past) musical genres are embedded in the improvising guitarists lexicon (including Punk). At first listening it might be surmised that gifted guitarist Joel Haines sits somewhere closer to the rock spectrum than to Jazz but his roots are much broader than that. As his gigs unfold you can hear Americana, modern Jazz guitar, country and a plethora of other influences. There is also the unmistakable influence of film, as his themes invoke pictures. This is what improvised music is about; appropriation and transformation. Nothing ruled in or out, nothing too free, too exploratory, too dissonant or melodic.

When you’ve been around New Zealand Jazz awhile you learn that Haines is one of the musicians that other musicians respect deeply. Guitarists especially come to hear him and I spotted a few in the audience on this night. The two sets kicked off as Haines sets always do; with Haines hunching into his semi-hollowbody guitar and playing with deep absorption. There are never introductions or tune titles, just waves of compelling music. Because he constructs his improvisations around soulful, bluesy and deeply melodic ideas, perhaps more so than other guitarists, there is a radiating warmth that emanates from the band stand. Black Tee-shirt, nut-brown wood-grained guitar, skin tones reddened by the club lights and rays of warm enveloping music. IMG_3090 - Version 2

To my ears there is always a tangible hint of Jimi Hendrix in his voicings. Few improvising guitarists could occupy this space so convincingly. It is the place that Hendrix was heading for in his last days, only thwarted by his demons. A place begging for further exploration by anyone brave enough. For all that, Haines is a modern guitarist, as much in the Scofield camp as he is Rock inflected. A feeling of familiarity guides us through his explorations, a sense of something familiar that you can’t quite place. This is gift that only the best musicians bring to a gig. His improvising journeys appear anchored by the vignettes he creates at the beginning of a piece, often worked over short loops, ostinato bass, or a tight driving pulse from the drummer. Themes stated, constantly expanded then contracted again. IMG_3040 - Version 2

For trio partners he had Oli Holland on upright bass and Ron Samsom on drums. Being multi faceted and highly experienced musicians they quickly found the heart of the music. Samsom in particular found his way deftly to where he added the most value. He has considerable experience in lineups like this, music which edges closer to Frisell than to Pass. Near the end of the first set Roger Manins sat in for a number (a composition by Joel’s brother Nathan from a recent award-winning album). The number added breadth to the gig as it gave us a different perspective; Roger played like a demon as always. This was another good night at the CJC and they just keep coming.

With the Auckland Jazz Festival shortly underway and a wealth of quality music on offer, I must echo what my friend Stu said, “This will surely be remembered as the golden age of Auckland Jazz and improvised music”.

Who: The Joel Haines Trio – Joel Haines (guitar), Oli Holland (bass), Ron Samsom (drums).

Where: CJC (Creative Jazz Club), 1885 Britomart, Auckland, New Zealand – www.creativejazzclub.co.nz

Joel Haines trio @ CJC

September 8, 2013 / JazzLocal32.com / 2 Comments

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At its best Jazz is a place of unexpected intersections. Being the music of appropriation there are deliberate collisions with other art forms and out of this comes new ideas and rich pickings. The Joel Haines gig last week caught us by surprise as Joel seldom gigs these days. He’s embedded deep within the session, film and TV world and his work will be known to most of us without realising it. I have seen him perform a number of times over the years, but these outings are often in the role of sideman. The last time I saw him was when his brother Nathan was in town.

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I really like his playing which infuses Rock and Country voicings into an open-ended Jazz vocabulary. He musical lineage is impeccable as he comes from one of the most respected Jazz dynasties in New Zealand. Father Kevin is a highly regarded and well recorded bass player, while brother Nathan is one of New Zealand’s best known and most respected Jazz exports. This family has all bases covered with talent shared equally.

Joel is certainly not an extrovert and at this gig he sat huddled, as if subsumed by his rich-toned Ibanez. When he leans forward to play, his long hair falls across his face and the effect is complete. His sound however tells the opposite story, the shrinking of physical presence enables him to become the notes and the lines he plays. There was only one announcement and there was only one number identified.

‘No introductions, lets just play”, he said quietly and they did. On stage Joel is all about the music.

This is Jazz informed by Joel’s years at the ‘Cause Celebre’ and above all by his musical influences. At times you can hear the echoes of Jimi Hendrix voicings or perhaps Bill Frisell, but the truth is that all of these influences arise from a deep well of ideas. His material is predominantly lyrical and warm at heart. You cannot separate this type of music from the film scores that have engaged us over the years. Jazz and Movie sound tracks have been inextricably linked since Ellington’s ‘Anatomy of Murder’ or Miles ‘Escalator to the Scaffold’. Joel works successfully in this world and a number of TV shows feature his music. I am one of those people who remain after a movie is over, waiting for the music credits to scroll. You would be surprised who you find in those fleeting glimpses. I recently watched a great Sicilian move where John Surmon wrote and performed the soundtrack. With the paucity of earning ability in Jazz, going into the studios or becoming a session musician has always been a good option.

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For the last two numbers Roger Manins joined them on tenor. The tune ‘Lady Lywa’ (by brother Nathan) was wonderfully performed and I am glad it was in the mix (as the only tune composed by someone other than Joel). This would be a contender for a New Zealand Jazz standard if given a chance. It was not surprising that Roger blended in seamlessly, as he Ron, and Oli are constantly playing together and the material gave them a solid spring-board for improvising.

I can recall Nathan once putting a cupped hand to his ear during a gig and saying, “Listen to that, the warm hum of valves). That hum was also evident between numbers at this gig, but for the main part the warmth emanated from the compositions and the ebb and flow of a solid performance.

Where: CJC (Creative Jazz Club) 1885 building, downtown Auckland

Who: Joel Haines (guitars), Oli Holland (bass), Ron Samsom (drums) – with guest Roger Manins (tenor).